Bennetta To Contest All Aged Stakes

Trainer Graeme Begg has confirmed that Bennetta will contest the 2014 All Aged Stakes at Royal Randwick on Saturday and is confident that his star galloper will be competitive in the Group 1 event.

Bennetta is chasing her maiden win at Group 1 level in the 2014 All Aged Stakes this weekend. Photo by: Steve Hart

Bennetta returned to the races with a third place finish in the Group 3 Sebring Stakes (1200m) at Rosehill Gardens on April 5 and Begg told Racing Ahead this morning that the General Nediym mare had taken plenty of benefit out of her first-up run and is in excellent condition heading into the All Aged Stakes this weekend.

“She will run in the All Aged Stakes,” Begg said.

“I just think that the field will probably drop away and we are going to take our place in that race and we are happy to do so.

“She has really gone ahead.

“She was earmarked to run last weekend in the Sapphire Stakes, but when she ran on a heavy nine in her first run back we decided to give her that extra time to get over the run.

“It may work to her favor because there are quite a few horses that have had a good bit of racing in to Saturday’s All Aged Stakes.

“Hopefully she will be the fresh horse on the scene.”

Bennetta was given a testing piece of work at Royal Randwick on Saturday and Begg said that four-year-old had worked strongly with regular jockey James McDonald on board.

Begg confirmed that McDonald will maintain the ride on Bennetta in the All Aged Stakes and said that the in-form hoop has been happy with the first-up effort of the talented mare.

“She worked very nicely this morning,” Begg said.

“James McDonald had a ride on her this morning and he couldn’t have been happier with the way that she went and the way that she feels.

“He has a good understanding of her and he was very encouraged by her first-up run; he felt that the heavy track came against here, but was very encouraged by the way she went.”

Begg is yet to decide where Bennetta will have her next race start after running in the All Aged Stakes on Saturday, but said that a trip to Queensland for the 2014 Brisbane Winter Racing Carnival was on the agenda; with both the Group 1 Doomben 10,000 (1350m) on May 24 and the Group 1 Tattersall’s Tiara (1400m) at Eagle Farm on June 21 both potential targets.

“What she does Saturday will shape where she goes from here on it,” Begg said.

“Brisbane is certainly an option and there are a lot of races up there.

“Whether we think about running in the Doomben 10,000 or we earmark the Tiara later in June.

Author: Thomas Hackett

Thomas is a passionate and opinionated racing journalist and punter who has been obsessed with horse racing since he backed Saintly to win the 1996 Melbourne Cup. An international racing enthusiast, he has his finger on the pulse of racing news not just from Australia but all around the world.